Stellenbosch university not inclusive, welcoming to black students, staffers — report

Black students and staff members still feel unwelcome and excluded at the Stellenbosch University. 

This is one of the findings made by retired Constitutional Court Justice Sisi Khampepe in her Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of Racism at Stellenbosch University Report.

The report was presented to the university's rector and vice-chancellor Prof Wim de Villiers on Tuesday. 

The commission formally began its work on June 13 to investigate, among others, incidents of alleged racism, the state of racial diversity and inclusion in the campus culture, and whether the university’s current policies are sufficient to deal with lived experiences of students and staff experiencing racism.

“Although the university appears to have in its arsenal a formidable transformation apparatus, black students and staff members still feel unwelcome and excluded at the university,’’ said Khampepe.

She said the overwhelming evidence before the commission indicated that the university is not an inclusive and welcoming environment for black staffers.

“There was not a single witness who did not comment in the fact that they have experienced subtle, underhand racism and prejudices in the course of their work at the university, both from staff members and students,’’ said Khampepe.

The commission’s investigation comes in the wake of alleged incidents of racism that have rocked the university in the past few months.

In May, Theuns du Toit, a white student, was caught on camera urinating on first-year student Babalwa Ndwayana’s desk, laptop and books at the Huis Marais men’s residence. The NPA said at the time it would prosecute Du Toit for malicious damage to property and crimen injuria.

The university also suspended another student from his residence after reports that he urinated in the room of his fellow student last month.

Khampepe commended the university for the efforts it has made in advancing transformation but added that more work still needs to be done by the university management.

“The university certainly cannot be accused of failing to take steps towards furthering transformation. Although the evidence showed that there is still much to be done, in official terms the university has accomplished a fair amount in a relatively short space of time.

“My only criticism of the university is that it is fairly evident that the formation of its transformation apparatus has occurred in a piecemeal and disjointed fashion. The upshot of this is that the transformation apparatus is actually quite complex, and it can take some time to understand how to navigate the various policies and structures,” said Khampepe. 

The university will host an online media briefing on Wednesday to address the findings in the report.

“We are in a process of studying the report and we will fully engage with the findings and recommendations. This is a top priority for the university,’’ said De Villiers.

kokam@sowetan.co.za